“Solo homers usually come with no one on base.”
-Ralph Kiner
Yes, I know. I promised I’d do Bill Terry. That will have to wait for another week. With the recent passing of slugger Ralph Kiner at the age of 91, I thought it was appropriate that he would get his due.
The card you see is his 1949 card but Kiner was the prototypical NL slugger in the time when the AL was king of sluggers. In the era of Williams and DiMaggio not to mention Berra and Rosen, it was Kiner in the senior circuit who bashed them out on a seemingly daily basis. In fact, Ralph Kiner led the NL for seven straight years from 1946-1952 all for the Pittsburgh Pirates.
The season that Kiner had in 1949 was probably one of his best of his career. He hit .310 and blasted his career best in homers (54) and tied for best in rbis (127). His slugging percentage of .658 is highest of his career and for what it’s worth, he stole six bases, more than any other season.
I’m breaking tradition and including Kiner’s entire career stats today:
| Year | Tm | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1946 | PIT | 144 | 502 | 63 | 124 | 17 | 3 | 23 | 81 | 3 | 74 | 109 | .247 | .345 | .430 |
| 1947 | PIT | 152 | 565 | 118 | 177 | 23 | 4 | 51 | 127 | 1 | 98 | 81 | .313 | .417 | .639 |
| 1948 | PIT | 156 | 555 | 104 | 147 | 19 | 5 | 40 | 123 | 1 | 112 | 61 | .265 | .391 | .533 |
| 1949 | PIT | 152 | 549 | 116 | 170 | 19 | 5 | 54 | 127 | 6 | 117 | 61 | .310 | .432 | .658 |
| 1950 | PIT | 150 | 547 | 112 | 149 | 21 | 6 | 47 | 118 | 2 | 122 | 79 | .272 | .408 | .590 |
| 1951 | PIT | 151 | 531 | 124 | 164 | 31 | 6 | 42 | 109 | 2 | 137 | 57 | .309 | .452 | .627 |
| 1952 | PIT | 149 | 516 | 90 | 126 | 17 | 2 | 37 | 87 | 3 | 110 | 77 | .244 | .384 | .500 |
| 1953 | TOT | 158 | 562 | 100 | 157 | 20 | 3 | 35 | 116 | 2 | 100 | 88 | .279 | .391 | .512 |
| 1954 | CHC | 147 | 557 | 88 | 159 | 36 | 5 | 22 | 73 | 2 | 76 | 90 | .285 | .371 | .487 |
| 1955 | CLE | 113 | 321 | 56 | 78 | 13 | 0 | 18 | 54 | 0 | 65 | 46 | .243 | .367 | .452 |
| 10 Yrs | 1472 | 5205 | 971 | 1451 | 216 | 39 | 369 | 1015 | 22 | 1011 | 749 | .279 | .398 | .548 | |
One thing that struck me after reviewing his stats was how much more disciplined he must have gotten after his rookie season. His league leading 109 strikeouts fell dramatically and his batting average rose significantly throughout his career.
As for his 1949 card, well who wouldn’t want that batting fourth after a big on base guy? With power numbers 1-1-5-5 in 667 plate appearances, he’s bound to drive in some runs. Kiner has a 7 and a 10 in addition to the requisite 8-8-8-9-9 combination which will help boost his average too.
Pitchers were obviously careful with Kiner. In 1949, he walked 127 times which translated to six 14s. He only received two 13s though. He learned from his rookie season.
Kiner was recognized for his prowess and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1975. He wasn’t done with baseball though as he broadcasted for the game for an amazing 53 years, primarily for the Mets. His affable style was marked with malapropisms and goofs which more than anything, endeared fans to him. “It is gone, goodbye” was his traditional homerun call.
As APBA fans, we were lucky to have had Ralph Kiner. The 1949 season was the first full season of the past published by APBA. Thanks to Kiner, the NL had a true slugger to root for. If memory serves, Musial and Hank Sauer were the only other two players who hit 30+ homers. Kiner gave Pirate fans in particular something to look forward to.
RIP Ralph Kiner
